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Lesbian Couple Disqualified from Adopting Refugee Child

So, can a lesbian couple adopt a refugee kid through Catholic Charities of Fort Worth? Funny you should ask.

When Fatma Marouf and Bryn Esplin, both attorneys and professors at Texas A&M University, learned that there were as many as 300,000 homeless or unaccompanied refugee children worldwide, they decided to adopt or foster one. They reached out to Catholic Charities of Fort Worth, a federally-funded agency specializing in placing refugee children, and set up an interview. During the interview, an employee told Marouf and Esplin that the agency only adopts to families who “mirror the holy family,” and because they were a same-sex couple, they would be disqualified. (Didn’t the “holy family” initially consist of an unwed pregnant teen? I digress.)

Lambda Legal filed suit on behalf of the couple, rightfully claiming that their equal protection rights under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution had been violated. As stated in their complaint, “[t]here is no valid basis for the government to prefer different-sex couples over same-sex couples when considering or approving would-be foster or adoptive parents.”

Michelle May O'Neil strives to provide clients with high-quality representation in a personalized atmosphere. She has over 20 years of experience representing men, women, and children related to family law matters such as divorce, child custody, and complex property division.

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About Michelle May O’Neil

Michelle May O’Neil strives to provide clients with high-quality representation in a personalized atmosphere. She has over 20 years of experience representing men, women, and children related to family law matters such as divorce, child custody, and complex property division. Described by one lawyer as “a lethal combination of sweet-and-salty”, Ms. O’Neil exudes genuine compassion for her client’s difficulties, yet she can be relentless when in pursuit of a client’s goals.